Life, or Something Like It
by Linwe Amandil
Summary: A young girl's story of her years at Hogwarts and the life that isn't as perfect as it seems...
1. Questions

Life, or Something Like It  
  
Chapter 1: Questions  
  
Ahh, September 1st. The day school starts. Of course, I have to go to King's Cross Station so I can catch the Hogwarts Express from Platform 9 ¾. The same happens every year. I didn't always go to Hogwarts, though. Well, actually, no one does, but especially for me. I didn't start going there until last year, in what would have normally been 4th year. I probably sound really confusing, so I'll start my story at the beginning.  
  
It was a typical summer day- typical, meaning that I was sitting at home with my brother, being bored out of my mind, and watching T.V. Oh, and of course, the dog barking like crazy. But then again, seeing as how he's always barking, I really didn't think much of it, thinking it was probably the neighbors. Even so, I still got up to see just what it was, because it was really starting to get annoying. I looked out the front window, expecting to see the neighbors or their dogs, but I saw nothing.  
"Dog, you're nuts," I said, then stopped. I could have sworn I saw something. All of a sudden, I saw a huge barn owl fly away. Well, I finally figured out what the dog had been barking at. But, seeing as how it had flown away, I shifted my focus back to what I had been doing- watching T.V. Reruns were the best.  
After a while, my parents came home. Well, actually, the more accurate statement would be my mum and step dad. They got married when I was four, and I started calling him Dad the day they got married.  
"Ánië, get the mail," he said now.  
Grumbling, I got up to go and get the mail. I reached the end of the driveway, opened up the mailbox, and pulled all the envelopes out. While walking back up to the house, I checked to see if I had any letters. I usually didn't, but I always looked nevertheless. At the bottom of the pile, I saw a strange-looking envelope addressed to.me!  
I came back in and handed all the envelopes to my mom, except for the one addressed to me.  
"Who's that for?" she asked, pointing to the thick envelope in my hand.  
"Uh, me. It's from Jojo," I said, wanting to go to my room and open it.  
"Oh, okay," she said, allowing me to escape to my room.  
Sitting on my bed, facing the window, I slowly turned it over and opened it. Inside, there were a few sheets of.parchment. How odd. I opened the paper, and started to read.  
Dear Ms Byrne, We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I remember thinking, "What is this?" I honestly had no idea. For a moment, the idea of a joke flitted across my mind, but it was banished with a single thought. No one would do something like that. So, for the time being, I had to assume it was true. But, if it was true, why didn't my mother say anything to me before? Unless.she didn't know. I then thought of my father's side of the family- my real father. I really didn't know much about his side. I mean, I hadn't seen him in 3 years, and I only saw my aunts, uncles, and cousins at Christmas. I saw my grandparents more often, but not that much. But I loved them, and trusted them. Glancing at the letter, I tried to figure out what to do. For some reason, I didn't want to show my mum. I figured that the only person I could talk to was my grandmother. Luckily, my brother and I were going to camp with them that weekend, so I would just ask about it then. 


	2. Explaining Things

Chapter 2: Explaining things  
  
I awoke that Friday morning with great joy. I was going to see my grandma and hopefully get an answer to some of my questions. But, they weren't coming until 5, and it was only 10 A.M. Only 7 more hours.  
  
A couple of hours later, I became extremely bored and went outside, just sitting there, watching my brother and neighbor fall off their skateboards. It was actually quite amusing, watching them try to do tricks and fall on their asses. I won't go on about the rest of the day, because frankly, it was very boring. So, on to the 'fun' part of the day.  
  
My grandparents arrived at 5, which was just after my mum came home from work, so of course they had the polite chat that was custom of them. I was very anxious to leave, even more so than usual, because of all the things running through my head. Finally, they were done talking and we were able to leave.  
  
We shared in the typical small talk on the drive to their camp, commenting (and laughing) as usual at the one lawn covered in lawn ornaments- pink flamingos, garden gnomes- the whole deal. I was also pleased to hear that our cousins would be coming as well, except that they would arrive the next day. Just as well- I had a few things I wanted to deal with before they came.  
  
After we got there, we helped unpack. There really wasn't that much, and we were settled in fairly quickly. Mika- my brother Mikhail- and I had a small dispute as to who would sleep where, but seeing as how he was 3 years my elder (he would be 17 in August, I would be 14 in November), he got the first choice. It didn't faze me much, because that was how it usually was.  
  
"Wow, Grandma, this looks really nice," I remarked, walking into the kitchen. They had started with just a trailer, but over the years had built on and remodeled it; recently, it looked very much like a regular house.  
  
"Why thank you, sweetie," she said. "We just finished it a few weeks ago."  
  
I then noticed that we were the only people inside. Mika had gone out with my grandpa to do something- not sure what. I decided to carefully approach the topic of my letter.  
  
"Er, Grandma, I was wondering.do you know what this is?" I asked, laying the letter in front of her and taking a seat at the table. I watched her scan the letter, then lay it back down on the table.  
  
"You don't know?" she asked, sounding only slightly surprised. With a shake of my head, she continued. "Well, I guess I'll have to start from the beginning."  
  
She explained to me the entire story of the world of wizards and witches. It took a long time, and I was so absorbed in her story that I didn't notice Mika and Grandpa come inside. At last, she finished the 'little' history lesson.  
  
"That was .very interesting, but.what does that letter have to do with me?" I asked.  
  
"Well," Grandma started, "it's your family. Your father's a wizard, as are myself and your grandfather. Which makes you a witch."  
  
"Yeah, I'll say," I heard Mika mutter. I hit him on the arm- typical brother/sister 'love'.  
  
"Shut up, Mika," I said. Trying to ignore my brother, I turned back to Grandma. "I'm a.witch?" I glance over at Mika, waiting for the comment to fall, but he decided that he wouldn't.  
  
"Yes," my grandma said. "Your grandpa and I went to Hogwarts- that's actually where we met." I saw them exchange loving looks, and then she continued. "Your father, aunt, and uncle all went there, and graduated. After they left, they went on to different jobs, got married, had kids- everything that you know about. Your aunt married a wizard, but your uncle and father both married Muggles.  
  
"Muggles?" asked Mika. Apparently, he missed out on that part of the conversation.  
  
"They're non-magic people," Grandma said. "So your father never told you?"  
  
"No," I said. I wanted to say, "When has he ever been around to tell us anything?" but I refrained from speaking my thoughts.  
  
"Hmm," she said now. "I thought he would have at least told your mum about it- your uncle told his wife and kids. But now, the decision is up to you. Are you going to go?"  
  
"Well, this is still kind of a shock for me. I mean, this all just got dumped on my head," I said.  
  
"That's ok, you don't have to decide right now. Well," she said, standing up and looking around, "who's hungry?"  
  
Hugs to K, my first reviewer! You should feel special ;) Read, Review! 


	3. Family

Chapter 3: Family  
  
The rest of that day passed as normal as it usually did. I was very much thankful- I definitely had a lot to comprehend and deal with. Day passed to night, and slowly everyone went to sleep.  
  
I woke up fairly early the next morning, at about 9:00. Most days I wouldn't wake up until about 11 or so. After breakfast, Mika and I took two of our old bikes out for a ride.  
  
"So," said Mika after we set out, "what are you going to do about that whole. thing?"  
  
I was kind of surprised that he actually took an interest, but I answered his question nevertheless. "It's all really. weird, you know? It's kind of like something you thought wasn't real, but it turns out that it is. I- I think I'm going to go."  
  
"Cool," he said. The rest of the time passed in silence.  
  
As we returned, we saw that our cousins were just arriving with our aunt and uncle. But the surprise was the arrival of our father and his new wife, Kat. We weren't expecting them, but then again, when was the last time our father ever told us anything? Nevertheless, we happily greeted him- we hadn't seen him in ages.  
  
It was a very enjoyable evening. We sat around talking, with a nice big fire, and roasted marshmallows. Of course Mika, our cousin Chris, and I burned our marshmallows, because, well, burned marshmallows are the best. We discussed this when asked why we let them catch on fire.  
  
"Besides, it's just fun!" Mika added.  
  
After a while, I pulled my father aside and asked him for a private moment. He agreed, and we went inside. I pulled out the letter and pushed it under his nose.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked, slightly upset.  
  
"It was your mother," he said. "I didn't want her to get angry."  
  
I couldn't believe he had actually said that. Of all the excuses he could have pulled (not like I would have fallen for them), he pulled the most overused of them all.  
  
"Why are you always trying to pin all your problems on her? I really don't see how you not taking responsibility and telling us the truth is her fault. Oh, wait, now I know- you didn't want to tell us anything because you want nothing to do with us, not to mention the fact that you never even wanted kids to begin with."  
  
"That's not-" he began, but I cut him off.  
  
"Yes, it is true. I heard about all the things you said, all the letters," I said forcefully.  
  
"So, she's trying to get you and Mika to hate me?" he asked, accusing my mum.  
  
"If you really want to know, I was the one that pressed the issue- she didn't want to say much and she certainly didn't want to make us hate you. Besides, I never even saw the letters for that reason, anyway," I said. "All of our feelings came from our own thoughts, and no one else's."  
  
"Listen, Ánië, I really am sorry about not telling you the truth. I realize now that I should have, and I guess I really don't have an excuse for not telling. I- I'm sorry," he said quietly, his voice full of emotion.  
  
"I'm really tired, I would really like to go to bed," I said, trying to escape.  
  
As I got up, he stood as well, and hugged me. It was very strange to be hugged by my father; I could not really recall the last time it had happened. I pulled away, went and changed into my pajamas, and curled up in bed.  
  
My thoughts were dark, thinking of my father and our conversation. He was full of lies, as usual. I began to wonder if he had ever told the truth to anyone. His apology was a lie, and I knew it. He made one too many empty promises, and I could no longer trust him. Anger filled me as I finally drifted to sleep.  
  
I awoke the next morning feeling a little depressed, but my heart lifted slightly when I discovered my father had left. I was, however, forced to put on a sort of show to avoid my troubles being seen. It was fairly easy; I had always wanted to be an actress, so I would work on not showing what I was thinking, or just put on a different face. Luckily, I had become that well at it that I could at least fool my family.  
  
The time passed, and it was soon time to go home. I was sad, I loved spending time with Grandma and Grandpa at their camp, but I was looking forward to seeing my mum and try to explain everything to her. Well, perhaps 'looking forward to' aren't the right words. It was more like anxiousness. But, I had a feeling it would definitely be an interesting conversation with her.  
  
We drove back home, talking occasionally. Mainly, I was wondering what I was going to say to my mum- I thought it would probably be a pretty big shock for her to find out about everything.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
And that's Chapter 3! Tell me what you think, Review!  
  
P.S. Don't worry, Hogwarts comes up soon... next chapter, actually. Yup, and it's a long one, too! 


	4. Saying Goodbye

Hey everyone, look, it's chapter 4! I actually got off my lazy butt and posted! Ok, thanks to Willowfairy, Chrissa, and Kaelinacoop for reviewing. They meant so much to me! There's also some inside jokes in here, so if you don't get some of it, that's probably why. Anyways, on to the story!  
  
Chapter 4: Saying Goodbye  
  
We arrived at our house around 3. The fact that Grandma and Grandpa came in didn't surprise me- they always did. Mika and I went up to our rooms- he wanted to call his girlfriend, and I wanted to go online to talk to my friends. After about an hour, I heard them getting ready to leave, so I went downstairs to say good-bye. Soon, the door closed and it was just my mom and I.  
  
"Ánië, your grandma told me about. all that stuff," she said. "Well, it came as a shock to me, and. I really don't know what to do.  
  
"I made a decision. I want to go," I said.  
  
"From what your grandma told me, I had a feeling you were going to go," Mom said. "I just want to let you know that whatever you chose to do, I'll support your decision."  
  
"Thanks, Mum," I said, hugging her. "I love you."  
  
"I love you too," she said.  
  
In a few days, I would start school. And before that, I needed to get all my stuff. My grandma ended up taking both my mum and me so we could see everything we would have to do in future years to interact between the Muggle and wizarding worlds. We drove to London, which was only about 15 minutes from where we lived. I had been to London many times- my parents both worked there, so I knew the city fairly well. However, I was surprised to find another building along one street.  
  
"The Leaky Cauldron," my grandmother said. "The Muggles don't notice it's here, but it is, and it's the entrance to Diagon Alley," she said, pushing the door open and leading us in.  
  
The inside looked like any other pub, except a lot less. modern. And everyone was dressed sort of, well, funny, in my eyes. Grandma seemed to know a few people inside; she said hello as we passed by.  
  
She led us out the back door, to the entrance of Diagon Alley. After doing the little 'thing' to get inside, I stepped back in awe. It was so weird, so. magical, I guess. (In retrospect, I think that was probably a given.) Everything just seemed too. well, different than what I was accustomed to. I loved every minute of it.  
  
After a few hours, we returned home. I had all my stuff packed and ready, even though I didn't leave for two days. After telling all my friends that I was switching to a boarding school (which was fairly believable, a few of my other friends had), they decided to throw me a surprise good-bye party.  
  
"Wow, you guys, this is so nice," I said. "It's so sad, I'm not gonna see any of you for almost a year."  
  
"I know," my friend Becky said. "Couldn't you leave any faster? I mean, come on already!"  
  
Everyone laughed, including me. "Oh, gee, Becky, thanks, nice to know I'm loved," I said with a sad look. They all laughed again. I loved my friends, and I was really going to miss them. Soon, it was time for all the guys to leave (the girls were sleeping over).  
  
"Bye you guys, I'll miss you so much," I said. "Bye, Stacey," I added to Matt, lowering my voice about 5 octaves. Everyone laughed, remembering Matt's party and the little phone prank we played. The memory still brought tears to our eyes.  
  
Soon, it was just the girls left. I wasn't too concerned about time the next morning; everyone would just have to leave by 9 or so.  
  
Slowly, everyone drifted into sleep, after talking about various topics. It was finally just Gwen and I still up talking, with Mary drifting in and out of sleep, offering comments of 'Fluffy' and 'meatloaf' (A/N: Inside joke, don't ask!). We were laughing hysterically until about 4 in the morning, when we decided that it was time to go to sleep.  
  
The next morning dawned bright and early. I rolled over, not wanting the morning to end. At 10 o'clock, I would be leaving for King's Cross and starting a new chapter in my life. As exciting as it sounded, I was actually having some fear. I guess I was just scared about leaving my old life behind- it was a really big change for me.  
  
Everyone woke up at about 8, and we sneaked in a little last-minute party before everyone's mothers came. We finished off all the leftover food, played some music, and it sadly turned to 9 o'clock. I promised to write to everyone, but I told them that mail would have to go through my mum (I thought it would be a bit of a shock for them to see an owl delivering mail). One by one, tearful hug by tearful hug, they all left. As soon as Tracie left, I ran to the shower. I only had an hour until I had to leave. After hopping out, I threw on capris and a tank top, then noticing it was cold, threw a sweatshirt over it. I double-checked my trunk, and with Mika's help packed it into the trunk of his car. My mum wanted to take me, but she had to go to work that day.  
  
The drive to King's Cross only took about 20 minutes. When we arrived, Mika heaved my trunk out of his car while I went to find a trolley.  
  
"Geez Ánië, what the hell do you have in here?" he asked.  
  
"Stuff," I replied simply, helping him lift it onto the trolley.  
  
"Feels like bricks," he grumbled.  
  
We went inside the station, looking for platforms 9 and 10. I had only been here a few times, and they were a while ago, so I wasn't sure where they were. After about 10 minutes, we found the place. I pointed to the barrier between the platforms.  
  
"Grandma said all we have to do to get onto the platform is to walk through the barrier," I said.  
  
"Walk into the barrier? Are you insane?" he asked incredulously.  
  
I noticed a group of people standing near us. They all had trunks similar to mine, so I figured they were also going to Hogwarts as well.  
  
"Watch them," I said to Mika.  
  
Small groups from the large one crossed the barrier onto Platform 9 ¾ - some running, some just leaning on the barrier and sliding through. Mika took note of the last group, and said, "Er. how's about we just lean there?"  
  
"Sounds fine to me," I said. To tell the truth, I was a little wary of running into a solid brick wall as well.  
  
We walked over to the barrier and leaned against it. It was a weird thing to slide through a solid brick wall, but we did it. Mika helped me store my trunk on the train, and hugged me goodbye.  
  
"Bye Ánië. See you later," he said. Typical brother response. Go figure.  
  
"Bye, Mika," I said.  
  
I boarded the train, feeling nervous. I saw a lot of kids, but knew none of them. I set off down the corridor, looking for an empty compartment. Finally, near the back of the train, I found one. Not expecting anyone to come, I sat down, pulled out my CD player, and relaxed. I heard a clock somewhere strike eleven. The train started to move. Looking out the window, I saw Mika and waved goodbye to him. He saw me and waved back. Soon, the platform dropped away and he was gone.  
  
After a few minutes, I overheard the compartment door slide open and I looked over. There were 3 kids about my age standing in the doorway, two boys and a girl.  
  
"Do you mind if we come in?" the dark-haired boy asked. "All the other compartments are full."  
  
"Go for it, I'm not expecting anyone," I said.  
  
"Are you new here?" the girl asked. "I don't recall ever seeing you."  
  
"Yeah, I am," I said. "Oh, and my name's Ánië Byrne."  
  
"Oh, I'm Hermione Granger, and this is Ron Weasley and Harry Potter," she said, referring to herself and the boys.  
  
"Nice to meet you all," I said politely, putting my headphones away.  
  
"Wow," Ron, the red-haired boy said to his friend. "That has got to be the first time someone hasn't said, 'Are you really Harry Potter?' and gawked at you for a full minute."  
  
"What, was I supposed to?" I asked, slightly confused and joking at the same time. "It's not too late for a reaction like that."  
  
Harry, the dark-haired boy, laughed. "Please, don't. It's actually nice to not have someone do that," he said.  
  
"Suit yourself. So, why does everyone look at you like that?" I asked curiously.  
  
"He's fa-a-a-a-amous," Ron said jokingly, with a little smirk.  
  
"Shut up, Ron," Harry growled.  
  
"Hey, it's true!" Ron exclaimed. Turning to me, he said, "Oh, you know, it's the typical Dark-Lord-kills-your-parents-tries-to-kill-you-as-a-baby- curse-rebounds-Dark-Lord-loses-his-powers type thing. He's really got a vendetta against our little Harry."  
  
Harry, meanwhile, looked halfway between wanting to kill Ron and being extremely embarrassed for being called 'our little Harry.'  
  
"So, onto other topics," he said quickly, apparently attempting to change the subject. "What year are you in, Ánië?"  
  
"Er, well, this is my first year going here, but apparently I'm supposed to be in 4th year. I just got my letter this year."  
  
"That's really strange," Hermione said. "Do you know why?"  
  
"Well, I think it's probably because my birthday is later in the year, and it got screwed up somewhere in between the two years. I really have no idea though, that's just my explanation or whatever. Either that or they weren't aware of the fact that I was even born. I honestly wouldn't put it past my father to hide that. But, anyway, I'm here now, so, whatever."  
  
The compartment was fairly quiet after I finished. Hermione broke the quiet moment after a bit.  
  
"So, are you going to classes with the first or fourth years?" Hermione asked.  
  
"I think I'm going to be with the fourth years; at least that's what my grandmother said would probably happen. But I'm being sorted with the first years," I said.  
  
"Have you heard about any of the houses?" she asked.  
  
"My grandma didn't say much about them," I responded. "So, no, I haven't."  
  
"Oh. Well, Ron, Harry, and I are in Gryffindor," Hermione said. "The other houses are Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff are okay, but Slytherin's just."  
  
"Evil," Harry and Ron said together, grinning.  
  
"I guess you could say that," she said. "They say there isn't a witch or wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin- although there are some exceptions."  
  
"Yeah," Harry said with a strange sort of look on his face.  
  
"I think it's more like everyone who was ever in Slytherin is. evil?" Ron said. Harry and Hermione laughed.  
  
"Yeah, I'd say that about sums it up," Harry said.  
  
We slowly turned to other topics, including Quidditch. Ron seemed shocked that I didn't know anything about Quidditch. Eventually, him and Harry ended up talking about Gryffindor's team. Hermione and I decided to take our leave for a few minutes.  
  
"Boys and Quidditch," she said. We both laughed.  
  
"Let me guess- they're going to be at it for a while, aren't they?" I asked, already knowing the answer.  
  
"Yes, they always do," she said. "I'm going to see how much longer we have till we arrive- care to join me?"  
  
"Oh, no, that's okay," I said. "I need to use the bathroom anyway."  
  
We both set off in different directions. I was thinking happily about the friends I seemed to be making. It was strange; I felt like I had known them as long as they've known each other. I also noticed the interactions between Ron and Hermione. I was no expert, but I was very good at reading people, and I could tell they liked each other. It was actually quite amusing; I thought of mentioning it to Harry sometime later.  
  
I walked back to the compartment, lost in various thoughts. Stupidly not realising where I was going, I was surprised to find myself bumping into someone else. We both fell back and landed on the floor. I quickly got up, embarrassed about not paying attention.  
  
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry about that," I said rather quickly.  
  
"No, that's okay, it's my fault," the boy said, trailing off at the end. He looked at me in a funny way, then turned and went his own way. Confused, I looked back at him and headed back to our compartment.  
  
I came back in time to catch the end of Hermione's lecture about something or other- I wasn't too interested in it. But, from the sounds of it, her and Ron had just had a very big argument.  
  
"Ron, it's really quite simple," she was saying, but I stopped her.  
  
"Am I interrupting anything?" I said, stepping in.  
  
"Please," Ron said. I laughed, but it was obvious he didn't want to hear any more of Hermione's lecture.  
  
"Ah! You're back! Which reminds me- we should be there soon, so we had all better change into our robes," Hermione said.  
  
I reached up to pull my robes out when I heard Hermione clear her throat.  
  
"Er, Ron, a little privacy?" she said.  
  
"Oh, yeah, right," he said, turning red. He opened the door and left.  
  
"So," I said, turning away from the door and to Hermione. "How long have you all been friends?"  
  
"Since our first year. There was a whole mess with a mountain troll, and we've been best friends ever since," she replied.  
  
"You're the only girl in the group?" I asked while pulling my robes on.  
  
"Yeah, pretty much. I have other friends besides Harry and Ron though. I've been looking for Gwen, but I couldn't find her. She pretty much keeps me sane with Harry and Ron around," she ended, laughing.  
  
Soon, Ron and Harry came back. Not too long later, the train came to a stop. We unloaded trunks and other belongings onto the station platform. I looked around, amazed at my new surroundings. We had arrived.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Read? Review!  
  
P.S. Ok, I'm working on formatting, so please bear with me! 


	5. Author's Note long overdue

**Author's Note--------Author's Note--------Author's Note---------Author's Note**

This is just in case anyone's actually still reading this….

I will be continuing this story, however, only after I make some serious revisions- overall, I'm not happy with the way things turned out. I have to go through pages of writing, re-read things, and do a massive overhaul of the entire story. So stay tuned, and hopefully I'll have something new out sometime soon.


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